Our baby is here!
Leading up to the birth, I'd been hoping for a more pleasant delivery experience than last time, and I got it! It wasn't the all-natural birth that I'd always wanted, but it was wonderful nonetheless. Like last time, this was a relatively long labor. Before going to the hospital, I'd been having rather painful contractions for more than 24 hours, which meant that I hadn't had much sleep. When my contractions were finally coming at regular intervals, Josh and I headed to the hospital.

We checked in about 2:30 a.m., and after some initial prep, I slipped into the tub to labor some more. While in the tub, I made the decision to get an epidural. My birth plan had been "wait and see," but as I told my midwife right before delivery, I finally learned something about myself. For me, pain relief was the right decision.

The rest of the delivery went so much more smoothly than last time. I felt in control, I felt confident, and the baby was doing really well. After I was fully dilated, we waited about 30 minutes before I started to push. I used some of the Hypnobirthing techniques that I'd learned to focus on breathing the baby down, and I swear that it worked! By the time I started pushing, it only took five or so rounds. The baby was out 9 hours after we got to the hospital, as opposed to 14 hours during Lulu's birth.

As my midwife put our new baby on my chest, I couldn't believe how big he (It's a boy!) looked. He weighed 8 lbs, 15 oz, and was 23 inches long. I think he will take after his very tall Daddy! We named him Gus—the name we had picked out for a boy during my first pregnancy.

Josh, Lulu, and I are all adjusting well to life with Baby Gus. Josh is obviously so in love with the boy, and it's sweet to see those two snuggled up together. Lulu has responded well for the most part, though she has requested that the baby be returned to my belly a couple of times now. Physically, I feel so much better than I did last time. I made it out of there with no stitches—what a pleasant difference! Emotionally, I am just ridiculously happy. Now, if we could just get a little more sleep!